Desensitising the Nervous Horse or Pony to Clipping

Are you already dreading the winter because of the very thought of how on earth you are going to clip your nervous horse? If this is you, take heart. There are things you can do now to help your horse to achieve a less stressful clipping experience.

Whether your horse is new to clipping or has had a previous bad experience, the key is to slowly introduce them to clippers and to the sensation, noise and process of the clipping experience and build up gradually. This process of acceptance is called desensitisation. The team at Masterclip have put together a quick guide on how you can approach desensitisation in the right way to ensure that the experience is as straight-forward and comfortable as it should be.

Clippers may be considered a ‘triple threat’ to your horse. A strange object that moves and makes a noise, sometimes with a snakelike cable too are common spook inducers.

The time frame to desensitise a horse to clipping can vary with each individual and the method used. There are a few ways to go about this process such as playing sounds of clipping whilst your horse is in his stable or introducing him to an electric toothbrush first.

However, one of the best ways to get your horse used to clipping in the initial stages is to introduce them to a small trimmer.

Not only will you be able to get your horse used to the sounds and vibration expected of a clipper, but you can use the trimmer to clip the coat, so he can really feel the sensation of being clipped and help him to understand the process will not cause him any harm.

Many horse owners use a trimmer alongside their heavy-duty clipper to carry out the finishing touches to a clip, so as the time comes when your horse is ready for full clipping, a pair of trimmers will always come in useful and are a great long-term investment.

• Timing: Choose a time to carry out desensitising training when your horse is at their most relaxed. Avoid feeding times, turn out time and other distractions. Check out our previous blog here for more tips.
• Safety considerations: Ensure you wear safety gear such as a helmet and steel toe capped boots and be prepared for spooky horses to react. The aim is to keep your horse’s anxiety low to help him realise the trimmer/clipper is not a threat, but some horses can be very quick with big reactions. Ensure you have an escape route to retreat to quickly if necessary and allow yourself plenty of room.

• Slowly does it: Gradually introduce your horse to your trimmers/clippers by allowing your horse to see and sniff the trimmer without them switched on initially. Starting towards your horse’s head where they can easily see the trimmer, until you can touch your horse with the trimmer on their head, neck, shoulder, back, belly etc and not forgetting to include the legs. The next stage is do the same process with the trimmer switched on. Slow movements, patience and persistence are the name of the game, always watching your horse’s behaviour. Watch @Dinky Ponies introducing the vibration and sound of the Royale clipper to shetland pony Georgie here. 

• Acceptance: Advance and retreat techniques involve presenting the clippers gradually and with each time the horse shows acceptance (being more relaxed) reward him by removing them. Timing is key with this technique and helps to train the horse to accept the clipper coming towards and away from him at different points over his body. The trickiest area for the horse to accept the clippers is at the poll, so it’s best to introduce this stage last.
• Positive reward training: Clicker training is also a great method to achieve desensitisation by using positive rewards when your horse performs the correct behaviour.

• Repeat:  A little time training every day or as regularly as possible will provide the best results. 15-20 minute sessions every day tend to work much better than longer sessions less frequently.
• Comfort: When your horse is ready to accept the clipper or trimmer, make sure your blades are set correctly for your clipper and they are sharp. Blunt blades will pull and tug at the hair. You don’t want all your hard work getting your horse to accept the clippers to be ruined by a resulting uncomfortable clip.
• Expert help: Sometimes, experience is best. Particularly for horses that may have had a traumatic experience in the past. Seek advice or guidance from professional horse trainers to put you both in the best stead for relaying your horses’ fears. Alternatively, discuss options with your vet.

Our updated showmate model, the Showmate II horse trimmer is the perfect  introductory trimmer for desensitisation training. It's compact size, low sound and vibration level make this handset a great option for all general trimming purposes and there are no cables to worry about as it's fully cordless. 

The next step up from a trimmer is a medium duty clipper. Our mains powered Royale clipper or cordless MD Roamer clipper offer the ideal solution for nervous horses, being much quieter and smaller than standard heavy duty clippers. Medium duty clippers are best suited for trimming, hogging and keeping on top of feathers and for partial body clipping on fine to medium density coats.

These A5 clippers are very versatile and can be used with wide blades for body clipping and narrow blades for trimming - it’s a clipper and a trimmer all in one. They are also great for cobs for fully clipping the legs where the lack of muscle on the lower legs increases sensitivity. 

If you feel you need to step up a gear and that your horse is ready to accept a heavy-duty clipper, our V-Series variable speed clipper is a superb option. This sleek, light and ergonomic heavy-duty clipper features a variable speed dial to allow you to clip using the lowest speed for reduced sound and vibration without compromising on power. This relatively small handset will blitz through a thick coat and the heaviest of feathers effortlessly. 

Another clipper to consider is our HD Roamer cordless clipper. If the cable is the biggest worry for your horse, this completely cordless clipper eliminates the worry of your horse spooking at or standing on the power lead. Our HD Roamer is praised by professional equestrian grooms as their preferred choice for clipping fidgety or nervous horses, to avoid the possibility of the horse becoming entangled in the cable. Take a look at Alicia Wilkinson Eventing clipping a nervous horse with the HD Roamer clippers here and Jackie Potts, head groom for the Fox-Pitt Eventing team here. 

Check out our range of horse clippers, and feel free to contact us if you need any assistance. 

At Masterclip, we’re passionate about horse clipping and offer free advice to help you find the right tools for you and your horse.